KNOW YOUR CHRISTMAS DINNER

We all love a Christmas dinner and there’s no reason why people living with diabetes should miss out, but are you aware of how much you are actually eating?  This information will allow you to decide what and how much you are consuming in carbohydrates and calories, all the details have been taken from the Carbs & Cals Carb & Calorie Counter book.

MEAT  (all 100g unless stated otherwise)

Type Carbohydrates (g) Comment Calories
Turkey 0 Dark meat 177
Light meat 153
Chicken 0 Dark meat 196
Light meat 153
Duck 0 195
Goose 0 301
Beef 0 125g 278
Lamb 0 125g 300
Pork 0 125g 269
Partridge 0 Roasted meat only 212
Pheasant 0 Roasted meat only 220
Rabbit 0 Stewed meat only 114
Venison 0 Roasted 165
Salmon 0 130g 273

POTATOES AND VEGETABLES   100g unless otherwise stated

(80g approx 2 tablespoons = 1 portion)

Type Carbohydrates Comment Calories
Roast Potatoes 26 In oil 161
New Boiled Potatoes 10 65g 44
Mashed potatoes 16 With butter 102
16 With semi-skimmed milk 70
Sweet potatoes 28 Baked 115
Brussels 3 80g 28
Brocolli 2 80g 22
Cabbage 2 80g 14
Carrots 5 80g 23
Cauliflower 3 80g 23
Green beans 3 80g 21
Parsnips 15 80g 125
Peas 8 80g 63
Sweetcorn 11 80g 62
Spring greens 1 80g 16

 

SAUCES AND OTHER ACCOMPANIMENTS

Type Carbohydrates Comment Calories
Horseradish 2 13g = 1 tbsp 20
Mint 3 16g = 1 tbsp 16
Mustard 0 English  1 tsp= 5g 7
1 Wholegrain 16g 1 tbsp 22
White Sauce 12 100g 158
Cranberry 8 20g =1 tbsp 30
Stuffing 13 Packet mix  65g 63
Yorkshire pudding 20 80g 158
Pigs in blankets 2 Chipolata 20g

Streaky bacon 1 slice

59
0 30
Gravy 11 230g 69

 DESSERTS

Type Carbohydrates Comment Calories
Xmas pudding 60 106g 302
Mince Pies 25 42g 158
Custard 30 180g 171
Ice Cream 18 Vanilla  18g 135
Cheesecake 35 100g 294
Cream 0 Single  15g 1 tbsp 29
0 Double 15g 1 tbsp 74
1 Clotted 30g 2 tbsp 176
1 Whipped 30g 2 tbsp 114
Creme Fraiche 1 30g 2 tbsp 113

SO, WHAT WILL YOUR CHRISTMAS DINNER LOOK LIKE?

Complete a table of what you are going to have and then consider if you want to make any changes.  Remember nothing is off limit but in moderation.  Apologies to those who eat an alternative meal, but you will be able to use some of this information in deciding your meal.

Create a table for yourself something like this example:

Food Amount  Carbohydrates Calories Sugar
Turkey 100g light meat 0 155
Potatoes 38g 10 61
Cauliflower 80g 3 23
Peas 80g 8 63
Carrots 80g 5 23
Brussels 80g 2 28
Stuffing 65g 13 63
Yorkshire 80g 20 158
Gravy 230g 11 69
Mince pie 42g 25 158
Custard 180g 30 171
TOTAL   127 972  

 Are you surprised how much it all adds up to? Now you know how much you are eating; in this example this one meal is using up a lot of your daily calories: for men (Average 2500kcals) and women (average 2000kcals), these are the calories you need to maintain your weight. It’s up to you to now decide if you want to make changes.  Eating from a smaller plate and reducing the amount and size of food that actually goes on your plate is a good start, especially the yorkshire pudding and stuffing.  If you are cooking, consider making yorkshires in muffin cases and the stuffing into bite-sized balls.  Having four small roast potatoes rather than two large gives the illusion of lots of potatoes.  Mince pies are best home-made and again can be made without a lid or just a star on top. Mini-size ones are even better.  Serve with cream rather than custard if you are counting your carbs.  Eat slowly and be mindful of every mouthful, only eat until you feel comfortably full.  It really is ok to leave food and you will feel satisfied and not bloated.  Finally, if you are able – and the weather permits, go for a walk.  Then you’ll be ready for the next round of food.

The other thing to add to the total is any drinks that you may consume with your dinner but we’ll leave you to think about that.

Have a good Christmas.

Diabetes UK have some great party/snack/dessert recipes and ideas for you to try this Christmas, here are a few examples that you could try.  Preparation time, calories, carbs and sugar are shown (per portion):

Mini bagels with smoked salmon spread

10 mins           332kcals          46g                  6.2g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/mini-bagels-smoked-salmon-spread

Roasted Beetroot hummus

40 mins           149kcals          13.1g               6.0g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/roasted-beetroot-hummus

 Char Siu Chicken skewers and sweet peppers

25mins 124kcals          6.3g                 6.1g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/char-siu-chicken-skewers-sweet-peppers

Vegetable pakoras

30mins 106kcals          8.9g                 3.0g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/vegetable-pakoras

 Tzakziki

10 mins           69kcals 3.1g                 3.0g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/tzatziki

Turkey Koftas

25 mins           155kcala          6.6g                 5.3g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/tzatziki

Nutty Chocolate Truffles

10 mins           62kcals 8.0g                 7.2g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/nutty-chocolate-truffles

Panna Cotta with fruit compote

10-15mins +chilling time        128kcals          13.1g               11.4g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/panna-cotta-fruit-compote

Blueberry Yoghurt cake with muesli base

30mins 148kcala          14.6g               6.0g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/blueberry-yogurt-cake-muesli-base

Chocolate Orange Souffle

10 mins           148kcals          14.6g               0.11g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/chocolate-orange-souffle

Mini Christmas Puddings

40mins 89kcals 14.3g               12.0g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/mini-christmas-puddings

 Mince Pies

50 mins           168kcals          17.4g               8.0g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/mince-pies

Gingerbread Decorations

30mins 128kcals          4.6g                 0.1g

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/gingerbread-decorations

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